Hebrew University Does Deal with General Motors giving them first right of refusal

Yissum, the technology transfer company of the Hebrew University, have done a deal with General Motors by which GM will sponsor applied research and have the first right of refusal for licensing any resulting inventions. See press release here

Apparently, the first research project which was chosen as part of this research collaboration focuses on forecasting car sales. Researchers from the Hebrew University will develop accurate mathematical models that will take into account not only sales data, but also data on people who have decided against buying. The research will be led by Prof. Jacob Goldenberg, and Keren Hadad from the School of Business Administration, Marketing Department, at the Hebrew University.

We await to see how the results of this research can be published in an academic journal whilst retaining commercial rights, and if this can be patented.